Lillys story
by Meethrill
Summary: Lilly was playful, young, and energetic, but she was also very curious. She was always wandering and going places she shouldn't. Imagine her shock when it leads her on one of the greatest journeys of her lifetime!   Please R&R! Much better inside.
1. Chapter 1

Lilly blinked tiredly at the dark form that approached, the pretty miss-matched colored eyes, one blue, one silver, looked down at her.

"Mother?" Lilly mewed tiredly.

"Lilly, you naughty kitten," her mother teased, licking the kits black and white fur. "You realize how dangerous it is to have wandered all the way out here by yourself? You could have been hurt," Lilly's mother mewed between licks.

Though Lilly's mother was very soft spoken, the kitten couldn't help but know that she had really stuck her paw in it this time. Lilly let herself be washed, and told her mother about what she had found in the soft, green grasses outside the big two-leg nest.

"Really, mother!" Lilly exclaimed excitedly to her mother less than a minute later, "I almost caught the green moth! It was so pretty! I thought I'd catch it, but..."

"Really," Her mother interrupted, "you run off, and all you're worried about is catching a green moth? Really, now, Lilly, you might have been a bit more thoughtful! What if I had not found you? Just exactly what would you have eaten?" Her mother queried, then sighed. "By the Great cats! I'll never understand you kittens!" She mewed with soft laughter.

Lilly purred, relieved that her mother didn't seem too disappointed in her. Her mother cuffed Lilly's ears lightly. Lilly was astonished to think of a day without food, though.

Surely that could never happen to any cat?

She padded on obediently after her mother, her tail drooping from the direction her thoughts seemed to be going. A day without food? That would be horrible. As she continued to follow her mother, Lilly's ears perked when she heard the sound of a not-so-far off yowl. It sounded angry, she thought. Her attention focused sharply. Confusion ran through the kit, as her mother hissed a curse, her ears went back in anxiousness and her tail flicked from side to side. Lilly stared at her mother, knowing she almost never cursed. This must be bad.

"Get behind me," Her mother mewed quietly. Lilly did, afraid of getting into trouble.

"Intruders!" Yowled a fast approaching cat. Lilly's ears went back, afraid. Who was this?

"Intruders! What are you doing here?" A grey tom growled as he appeared, bounding into view. Lilly never remembered moving. Lilly just leapt back, hissing, every fur on her tiny kit body fuzzed. He meant to hurt them, she was sure of it! Why, if he so much as touched a _whisker_ on her mother...! Her mother cuffed her with her tail, though she wasn't happy to be spotted, either. Lilly lessened her fury, startled.

The grey tom hissed threateningly. Lilly's mother quickly crouched closely to the ground, her pretty mismatched eyes wide and her ears pinned back, looking worried, her tiny Kittypet collar tinkling as she crouched down softly, an instinct she used to look less intimidating to the other cat. 'We're not intruding; we were just leaving to wood now," she began, but was rudely cut off.

"Liars and thieves!" The tom interrupted, accusing her threateningly. Lilly hissed, pressing closely to her mother.

"We are not liars _or_ thieves!" Lilly objected, her fur fluffing up in anger of the accusation. It was a good thing she _hadn't _caught the moth, she guessed.

"Don't attack us!" Lilly's mother exclaimed, seeing the tom unsheathe his claws. "Please, my kit just wandered into the forest, she meant no harm, and nor do I-" but she was cut off again. This time, by a huge, orange tabby tom that jumped up after the smaller grey tom. He hissed as soon as he saw them.

"Your kit looks fine and strong, for a Kittypet," the new, larger tom growled. "You've invaded this territory too often for your hunts, she-cat." He mewed quietly, interrupting Lilly's mother. When her mother didn't respond, he went on, a threatening gleam in his eyes. "You have a choice, you can leave your kit here, or you can die," He growled, unsheathing his claws.

Lilly was quickly grabbed up by her mother, but Lilly wriggled free. She had a plan. "Let me stay, Mother! I'll run to their nest with them!"

Her mother looked startled and pained. With a look to her kit to the large tabby tom, she seemed to grow determined, but turned and ran, the larger tabby tom sneered and lunged at her aggressively to make her run faster, spooking her. Lilly watched her mother leap out of sight, only to disappear. Lilly cowered, suddenly terrified. What would she do without her mother? But Lilly stayed where she was. The large tom looked at Lilly scornfully as she looked to him helplessly.

"Crow food! You dare think you're coming with us, do you?" The large tom sneered.

"I-I t-thought I could grow up and be strong like you!" Lilly lied. It worked with her rough, old aunt, so maybe flattery would work with him, too?

The grey tom stared, and purred. For an instant, Lilly felt like she had succeeded-until her turned serious and leapt forward violently. "you can only die, kittypet!"

"Run!" The grey cat hissed quietly, barely loud enough for her to hear. At that very moment, Lilly bolted, afraid for her life.

"Catch her! Don't let her and that blasted kit get away!" The larger tabby tom yowled, irritated. He gave chase, taking long, fast strides in his running to catch her. But before long, she'd lost him and shocked herself to find her mother. After a brief moment of recognition, mother and kit were in the woods farther than they'd ever been, surrounded by unfamiliar territory. The chase was far behind them by the time they'd stopped. The pursuing cats could no longer be heard, and Lilly and her mother were thoroughly exhausted. They'd gone on as far as they could. Exhausted and scared, Lilly fell asleep by a cool running river, completely drained, and fell asleep.

Time went by quickly for the slumbering cats, curled together for warmth in the chill that passed as night came and went. When Lilly's mother did finally wake up, it was to another, lighter gray tom with longer fur, who looked more concerned than anything else.

"Wake up." The cat coaxed, prodding them with a gray forepaw. "Ivyfoot?" he pressed, prodding her more. "Ivyfoot!"

Ivyfoot blinked awake, looking up to her friend from one of the forest clans. "What…?"

"Why are you here? What are you doing in ThunderClan territory?" The tom asked, sitting down as the mother, Ivyfoot, sat up.

They talked softly, and after awhile, Lilly, too, woke up. She was still exhausted, and after a day of so much fear and running, without any food, it was very hard on her. She had an empty stomach that churned and ached. She got up, her back arching, like it would help her ease the aching in her stomach.

"Mother?" Lilly asked, looking pained and hungry, "I'm so hungry... is there anything to eat here?"

With a sigh, the grey tom stood. "I suppose I'll have to get something for you two to eat, but you have to get moving after that, or else you run the risk of getting caught here. Move on to the sunning stones, Ivyfoot. There's a hollowed log there that should help shelter you both… and get rid of that collar. I'll bet the two-legs can hear you for miles with that thing on."

The tom turned and disappeared into the forest with a faint rustle of grass and leaves. "He'll be back with food," Lilly's mother said. "When he does get back, you must thank him generously. He's taking a big risk to feed us at all," her mother mewed, licking Lilly's head with soft, sure swipes.

Lilly's head swam. She flattened her ears and looked up at her mother as she cleaned Lilly. How could things suddenly be so calm? Lilly wondered. She looked to a bird in a tree, then the sky behind it where the stars were slowly disappearing.


	2. Chapter 2

Lilly and her mother Ivyfoot waited by the stream and dove into an old, rotted out log every time they heard a rustle. Lilly thought that it was fun, but she knew her mother was terrified of being discovered. She paused and watched her mother look out, over the river, at the bank. A fish had washed onto the rocks and flopped there temptingly before managing to swim away.

Lilly had very nearly leapt straight into the river after the very tasty looking fish, before she was stopped by her mothers call.

"Lilly!" Her mother gasped, pouncing in Lily's way. "Don't! You can't hunt here, Lilly. This is not our land. None of this is. Don't go jumping around in the water, chasing the fish, either. They belong to RiverClan."

Lilly looked down, feeling confused and ashamed, and padded away, over to the other side of the hollowed out log with her tail down and her ears back. She felt rather sad that she had been scolded so much already today. First it had been the rustling in the grass, and then the cat across the river. At home it had always just been so easy! She had her food ready for her and the water was always fresh and clean. There were friendly cats to talk to, play with and learn from. There wasn't any need to worry about that food would flop away – at least, until now. Suddenly she was in the forest, where she had no food, cats couldn't be trusted, and the water apparently wasn't for drinking, either. She licked her whiskers in thirst. Now she couldn't even chase the shiny, jumpy fish. Lilly was bored and tired and felt guilty. All she wanted was to go home and rest.

Well, Lilly thought, I can't eat and I can't drink, but why can't I go home? Lilly thought, her ears perking a little, and then a little more at the thought. Well, where was home, though? Her thoughts were hushed as the friendly grey cat came into sight. Her tail went straight up. Finally, some food!

But she was taken aback by what she saw. Mice? Birds? She could hardly believe it when the grey tom laid them on the ground. Her mother chose a bird with a red breast, and the grey one took a mouse. It meant she got a mouse as well. She padded over to it, and pawed it, unsure. She saw the grey one watching her out of the corner of her eye, and looked. He was watching her with a smirk.

"Too used to your Kittypet food, little one?"

"I'm not little!" Lilly huffed, indignant. She pulled the mouse back to her, and picked up the mouse with her mouth. The smell was woodsy and delicious. Both of the older cats mewed with laughter. Sitting, Lilly focused determinedly on her mouse, and took a tentative bite, unprepared as she was for it to taste as wonderful as it ended up being, her eyes widened with surprise. It was good! By the great cats, it was better than any food that her two-legs had ever given herI She ate it quickly, and looked for more, but there was only a sparrow left, and her mother was already heading for it.

"Ivyfoot, you and your kit should come with me, to the ThunderClan camp." He said, looking from Lilly to her mother. "You'll be safer there from TigerStar and the rest of ShadowClan. They've gotten to be quite feisty, lately."

"We've noticed…" Her mother said, looking down. "We met some of them. They tried to kill Lilly and they chased us into the forest until we lost them in your territory."

Lilly's ears were perked; her head tilted to the side as she listened to her mother retell the morning's events from the beginning. Lilly contented herself with licking the bones of her meal clean, and washing her face and ears afterwards. Lilly didn't want to go back in the woods, where the dangers of the big toms were, and the now unbearable food of the two legs she lived with… but, she though, pausing in her cleaning, it was her home, and wouldn't her two-legs worry? Was the taste of mouse worth her friends and family?

"Lilly!"

Lilly looked up from staring at the small mouse bones before her. "Sorry," she mewed; flinching a bit at the look she got from her mother.

"Honestly Lilly! You should be listening to what Graystripe has to say, you know. It benefits us all."

Startled by her mothers' earnest tone, Lilly's ears went down and she shuffled her paws, uncomfortable and embarrassed. Being scolded in front of Graystripe was humbling all on its own, even if it _was_ gentle. It felt like more of a punishment, all on its own, to have to be reminded of such a simple thing.

"I'm sorry," Lilly mewed softly, without looking up to her mother. "But... what is it that I missed?" she asked after a moment of quiet, looking up to see Graystripe looking to her mother. She watched them both now in open curiosity and eagerness, hoping to make up for not paying attention before.

"Don't be so rough on her, Ivyfoot. Relax. I know this makes you nervous, but don't take it out on her," he meowed. Ivyfoot nodded reluctantly.

"What is it?" Lilly encouraged, more curious now than before, and now, also more concerned. What was going on? "What did you say before, Graystripe?" Lilly retried, losing her shyness around the large gray tom.

He stood up on all four huge paws, and made his way towards her at an even pace. 'I asked you how you would feel about coming with me to join ThunderClan," he meowed, sitting in front of her.

Lilly could hardly stop herself from leaping up in surprise. Her? Join a forest cat Clan? She felt warm with the shock of it, and pleased at the praise. "I want to come! I'd feel just fine doing that!" But then she paused in her joy, reconsidering for a moment. What about Pearl, the other older cat at the two-leg nest and her two-legs? What about her mother? But her mother, Ivyfoot, seemed to somehow know the kits fears and licked her on top of Lilly's head soothingly.

"Everyone else will be fine without you, Lilly. I'll tell them how brave you are," Ivyfoot mewed as she stopped licking Lilly's head. Lilly ducked under Ivyfoot in her last attempt to groom her kit.

Lilly was angry and startled. "Wait, you're not coming?" She mewed, her eyes wide in confusion.

Ivyfoot fixed Lilly with a calm expression, and the kit couldn't help but calm down, just enough that her mother mewed sympathetically. "I can't. You must go on in your own paw prints from here on out."

Lilly stared at her mother, shocked. Go on an adventure, without her mother?

No.

She wanted her mother to come. What if she never saw her again? What if the grey cat found her? Or the great orange tom? She was worried.

Ivyfoot purred and nuzzled her daughter, ignoring the sudden stubbornness she seemed to have adopted. "I'll be right where I always was, darling. You have an opportunity here. You must take it. StarClan waits you in their presence."

"Once we leave, Lilly, you can't go to your old home, or to your mother at the two-legs nest. You will have to remain in ThunderClan and show your loyalty to your new clan."

Lilly looked up to Graystripe, only to see that he was serious. "Okay," she mewed, caught between happiness and dispair. She purred to her mother, and said her goodbye. Lilly knew it was wrong in the face of what she'd just agreed to, but she promised herself that she'd say hello once in awhile to her mother every so often, as Graystripe and Lilly began to run through the tall grasses of the forest.

She would come back.


End file.
